Remember When: Students sit-in, a pancake party and hair that 'keeps growing'

Welcome to Remember When, our weekly delve into the Advertiser archives to see what was making headlines 30, 35, 40 and 50 years ago this week

Staff reporter

11:43AM, Friday 23 February 2018

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1968: More than 70 sixers and seconds from Maidenhead cub packs tucked into pancakes at the Sea Scouts HQ in St Mark’s Road (main picture). It was one of the quarterly meetings meant as a transitional step between cubs and scouts. Cine films taken by scout leaders and senior scouts were also shown.

1978: Hair ‘just grows and grows’ was the shock revelation in the Advertiser this week 40 years ago as we published a story about 13-year-old Lisa Messer’s 34in tresses.

The Newlands pupil, who was only 54in tall, could sit on her hair and detailed the lengthy weekly ritual of washing it on a Sunday afternoon so it was dry in time for her to go to bed.

1978: Fifteen colour parties from the brownies, guides and rangers braved the cold to gather outside St Mary’s Church for the annual Thinking Day parade service.

Thinking Day was the day in the year the guide movement set aside for girls to think about their ‘sisters’ around the world.

1983: Chants of ‘Maggie Out!’, ‘Don't Give us debts!’ and ‘No to loans!’ rang out from students at Windsor and Maidenhead College when they staged a sit-in.

The protest, in the main foyer of the college in Claremont Road, Windsor, included many students from Maidenhead, opposed to government cuts in grants and the new proposed loan scheme.

It was followed, with the permission of the police, by a noisy march of about 180 students along Peascod Street to Windsor Castle.

1983: Youngsters made valuable use of their half-term holiday when they took part in a marathon 24-hour sponsored indoor games session at Maidenhead’s Castle Hill youth centre.

The 37 participants aged 11-17 were arranged into teams who spent about an hour-and-a-half on activities ranging from board games, cards and snooker to table-tennis.

The aim was to raise £500 for the Andrew Harrison Leukaemia Appeal, set up in memory of a Desborough School pupil who had died of the cancer the day before his 12th birthday at Great Ormond Street Hospital.

1983: Disco dancing youngsters raised £50 for the Bourne End Holiday Activities Club. About 140 energetic children aged five to 12 took part in the tea-time disco.

While the youngsters thoroughly enjoyed themselves, the Advertiser reported ‘most of the mothers went home with headaches’.

1988: Members of the Comets, a club for young athletes took a break from training to pose for a picture in the Advertiser’s sports pages.

Affiliated to Maidenhead Athletic Club and based at Braywick, there were more than 120 members aged six to 18.

The Comets trained indoors during the winter with the main emphasis on track and field, with most of the youngsters competing at a good standard.

1988: As the Shire Horse Centre in Littlewick Green prepared to open, its guides, sporting new striped uniforms, held some pre-season training.

How to harness an 18hh shire horse was the main item on the agenda for the guides who would be giving daily demonstrations with a running commentary.

The impressive sight of a fully harnessed shire was seen by the centre’s 100,000 visitors a year.

Live music and entertainment by Bombay Baja, The 10th annual Norden Farm Lantern Parade returns to the town centre with this years theme Carnival of the Animals - Down on the Farm - Photo: Emma Sheppard 9/12/18

Live music and entertainment by Bombay Baja, The 10th annual Norden Farm Lantern Parade returns to the town centre with this years theme Carnival of the Animals - Down on the Farm - Photo: Emma Sheppard 9/12/18